I worked at billion-dollar hedge funds with some of the most talented analysts on the Street. It was their job to analyze companies we bought and sold. I was the trader, so it was my job to trade them.

But everyone within the walls of a hedge fund is supposed to have an opinion. That is, until your opinion is deemed worthless. I was never very big on being a student, so modeling companies and reading research reports seemed like homework. No thanks. What I liked to do was talk to people, observe them and try and spot trends. And sometimes it manifested into money-making ideas.

Everyone thinks the market is controlled by the traders, investors — and Satan. But the truth of the matter is that the stock market is really controlled by the consumer. It's the person standing in front of you in the 10-items-or-less checkout line with 13 items; it's the freaks camping out for Black Friday; it's the kids running around Toys 'R Us screaming, "BUY ME THAT!"

And when it comes to technology, who better to ask than the kids who've never lived without it? My 9-year-old daughter Lola and her best friend, Mia (8 years old), sometimes seem to know a lot more than I do. Okay not sometimes … Always. Not only do they have their personal preferences, but they are also subjected to a gigantic peer group. And let's be honest, it doesn't get much more critical than elementary school.

We spent half a day at CNBC's Smart Bar to check out the new gadgets and technology and get insight from these pint-sized analysts.

Instantly, they were pulled by magnetic force to the iPhone 6. The phone had superhero strength and both girls were transfixed.

"It's a little big," Mia said, looking like someone just cut her in the lunch line.

"You don't have to use it," I said.

"No, no it's fine," she said opening up an application. "Hey, Lola, check this out."

"Hey, girls — we need to film this. Can you put the devices down?" I said to both of them. "I mean NOW."

"Because it's safer than the other ones," she said. "It's only slightly inappropriate," she added, glancing at Lola. They both started to giggle like an inside joke had been told.

It was time to set up a different shot, so the girls got a chance to roam around and check out everything else they had. There was something about the MacBook Air. The iPhone didn't seem so stimulating anymore.

Commentary byTurney Duff, a former trader at the hedge fund Galleon Group. Duff chronicled the spectacular rise and fall of his career on Wall Street in the book, "The Buy Side," and is currently working on his second book, a Wall Street novel.He is also featured on the show, "The Filthy Rich Guide," which airs Wednesdays at 10pm ET on CNBC. Follow him on Twitter @turneyduff.